Free $500 Fantasy Baseball Contest

Arcade Mode is the new easy-to-draft and fast-scoring fantasy baseball contest. To play, simply select a team of five hitters and one pitcher playing on Monday night. With more scoring and higher bonuses, Arcade Mode makes baseball even more exciting to watch.

Entry into the contest is free. Plus, 150 users will win a prize — guaranteed.

Picking a lineup is simple. Here is a sample lineup from last week:

Arcade Mode Fantasy Baseball is the easiest way to add excitement to the baseball season.

Comments

This is free to enter so it’s no loss but try not to get sucked into these DFS sites. Unless you have thousands of dollars a day to spend on like 200 different lineups you have no chance of winning against the high-stakes gamblers who use automated scripts and other sophisticated technology to win the real money.

There’s a high-stakes DFS gambler named Sayiid Suh – he was profiled in a long piece last year about how these wesites are a loser for the average guy without money. This guy puts in as many as 800 lineups a day, spending up to 27-30,000 dollars a day. And he wins millions a year on it. And there’s thousands of big fish like him. They win the real money. A guy like you or me might be lucky to make our 3 bucks back, but these people swoop in on new players; they have incredibly powerful analytics tools, and they win all the actual money in these games.

I don’t know if I can link to it, but it was a long ESPN OTL piece called “the implosion of the daily fantaasy industry.” Fascinating stuff. I guarantee for this freebie a bunch of those big fish players have already put in hundreds of lineups.

That is the key – play with groups of friends or head to head with strangers on low entry fee.. Also avoid contests that allow multiple entries. I am by no means a pro at DFS but I do enjoy having a little action on the games – and not just mlb.

This particular contest may be free. But the entire point of having this contest is to draw in folks who will continue playing and losing real money. Hence it promotes gambling on baseball. Which I still consider a bad thing, even if legal.

The contest is meant to get your email and ip addresses so you can get bombarded with ads for gambling stuff.

It is problematic that MLB partners with DK when you consider how the sport’s biggest scandal was a thrown world series and one of the best players of all time wasn’t inducted into the Hall of Fame and is banned from the game because he gambled on his own team.

1. Not to (hopefully) get too technical here but Pete Rose was banned when he agreed to a lifetime ban in lieu of a hearing and findings of fact–which he was entitled to. The ‘crime’, which would have earned him a lifetime ban had a hearing been held, was betting on a game in which he had a duty to perform, not betting on his own team. Had he bet on his team’s opponent it might have been even worse for him, although it’s difficult to imagine how.

2. My greatest concern with the MLB/gambling partnership is only touched upon by the ‘Black’ Sox scandal. In 1920 Rothstein, Attel, etc. were able to fix the World Series despite not having any friends, let alone partners, among the MLB owners or league officials. What will the next generation of these hustlers try to get away with now that the ethics cop (MLB) is also their partner and would have strong motivation to cover up any misconduct.

You people who get all worked up over whether something is gambling or not. Come off your moral high ground. We all have vices folks. It is a game whether it’s free or I put money in on it or not. Is it gambling? Sure it is. Life is a gamble. When you roll out of bed each morning. You gamble the floor will be there when your foot comes down. We all have choices. I choose to play DFS. If you don’t I am totally fine with that. Just like you should be fine with my choice to play & not come in riding your moral high horse & try to change my mind & tell me how wrong gambling or whatever is. MLBTR advertises DK just like MLB advertises. MLB advertises beer. That doesn’t mean you have to have one. I’ll have mine & yours also. I put 10$ on DK in October 2015 & I am still playing on that same 10$. I play the quarter contests & the free contests & I put in one lineup a day on MLB. The reason? Because it’s fun & it’s the choice I’ve made. Now, if you’ll excuse me. I need to get my lineup in for this free contest.

&, this whole Pete Rose argument about gambling on baseball is as old & tired as he is. He is banned & should be because he was in the game& could have had an effect on the outcome of a game. Those of us who play DFS can have no effect on any game. Players, managers, coaches & front office personnel should not be able to gamble on games because they all can have a direct or indirect effect on game outcome. Past Petes gambling on the game. The reason Pete is banned & should be is after he was caught. He continued to lie about it & drag others thru the mud to cover himself. Love Pete all you want. That’s your choice. But don’t stand his old tired body & story up as the reason those outside the game shouldn’t be able to bet on it.

“But don’t stand his old tired body & story as the reason those outside the game shouldn’t be able to bet on it.”

Nobody is doing that. The discussion/argument here is about whether it’s a good idea for MLB and this website to be partners with folks who run contests which involve gambling on baseball. What you and the gambling entities do elsewhere is irrelevant; nobody is or will be telling you that you can’t gamble on baseball or the gambling elements that they can’t run these contests.

“The reason Pete is banned & should be is after he was caught. He continued to lie about it & drag others thru the mud to cover himself.”

The reason “Pete” is banned is that he was caught gambling on his team’s games. That’s an auto-ban by MLB standards. While lying about it for 20 years may well have hurt his chance for reinstatement that is not why he was banned.

“Love Pete all you want.”

I don’t. And didn’t when he was playing and managing either. He got exactly what he knowingly risked and deserved.

“You people who get all worked up over whether someone is gambling or not. Come off your moral high ground.”

That’s not what is going on here. I don’t see anyone denouncing gambling on moral grounds. What I and others are saying is that it’s a bad idea for MLB to both run baseball games and partner in gambling on those games. Is the likelihood high that this will result in ‘fixed’ outcomes? No, probably not as there’s too much money involved. But, as baseball fans we shouldn’t even be asking the question. The integrity of the games must be beyond question. Even Landis recognized that, which was why he reacted to the 1920 scandal the way he did.

“We all have vices folks.”

Indeed. That’s why this discussion is not about convincing people not to gamble.

“It is a game whether it’s free or I put money on it.”

It’s only a game when it’s a legitimate contest. If any portion of the outcome is fixed it becomes an exhibition, similar to pro wrestling. You betting on a game isn’t the problem. MLB’s partners handling your wager is a problem.

“MLBTR advertises DK MLB advertises. MLB advertises beer. That doesn’t mean you have to have one.”

True, but besides the point. This website had choices as well and it chose to ally itself with gambling elements. And we aren’t talking about your typical banner ad with link to their site here. The owner of this site posted under his own name an invitation for his readers to participate in this contest, the only purpose for which is promoting gambling on baseball. There are places in this country where weed is now sold legally. Will this website accept advertising which encourages people (in legal states only) to smoke? Using your argument they should. And I wouldn’t have a problem with it as it wouldn’t reflect on the integrity of the game of baseball.